“PIGS IS PIGS”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24698, 29 August 1941, Page 10

“PIGS IS PIGS”

ro THE EDITOR Sir, —In a letter on the subject of bow and arrows a recent writer covered the subject pretty well, but could well have mentioned that a good many hunters, disgusted with the ease of slaughter possible with a good rifle and high-powered ammunition, have turned to the bow and arrow to give them the thrill of true hunting. Even though there are many of the “blaze-away boys." with the majority a sense of fair play demands that, even in hunting, the hunted he given a fair chance and demands also the realisation that it is not the getting of the limit bag that conltitutes sport, but that it is the thrill to be obtained by maching skill with skill arid cunning with cunning. Many think that this can be best obtained by replacing the report of the rifle with a sound similar to that made by a flying bird. No doubt the S.P.C.A. had visions of poor little pigs running for days through the scrub with arrows sticking' in them and rather overlooked the fact that a pig set upon by a pack of dogs iis soon a rather sorry object, as any hunter can testify, and that death by bullet, knife, or arrow is then only a humane release. No doubt, also, the society will bear in mind in its findings that, even with rifle shooting, for every deer killed almost instantly many others, when hit, escape with injuries which may cause a lingering death. Target arrows will not serve very well for hunting, not that they are incapable of killing; they are, but. heavier, differently designed arrows—broadheads—are far better. Animals effectively punctured by arrows die by haemorrhage, and in order to promote this as much as possible, especially with vicious wild animals, the arrow must be of the broadhead type. In his book oh archery Dr Hebcr Butts says: Such a broadhead, if released from a sufficiently strong bow, is capable of terrible execution when it strikes an animal in almost any location. It is quite capable of penetrating the skull or spinal column of most wild animals, or of passing quite through such an animal as a deer or mountain sheep. It is a more effective and humane method of killing the animal than a highpowered rifle bullet, because the broadhead is almost certain to sever important large blood vessels. The rifle bullet may not do this, and the animal may get ‘away and die days later of infection. By. choice the broadhead arrow is aimed at the heart location of the animal sought, but any abdominal or thoracic wound will probably quickly kill the animal, as large blood vessels are certain to be severed. Broadheads are suitable missiles with which to hunt any wild animals, excepting possibly the pachyderms of tropical countries: their thick tough hides may not be penetrated sufficiently to sever important blood vessels and produce death. And the broadhead will kill to the utmost limit of its flight, be it 30 yards or 180 yards. Of course, hits at the latter range are pure luck, but rarely they have effectively been made. A broadhead arrow is the product of over an hour’s careful work, and the bowman who goes out with about six of these arrows must needs put them to good use because the wild piggies on the ranges are very different from those featured in nursery rhymes, and a misplaced shot might easily make the hunter the hunted.— I am, etc., J. E. Strang. Dunedin. August 27.